October 10, 2019
Oily skin does not have to be something you live and struggle with forever- there are products and treatments out there to help! I’m going to walk you through a really simple, yet effective skincare routine for oily skin. Hopefully, this will help you take back control of your skin.
If you happened to miss our skincare routine for dry skin, check that out here!
By: Kaitlyn, NP
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When you have oily skin, I understand that it can be really frustrating trying to find products that help to keep the oil production under control. There are a lot of causes for oily skin including (but not limited to): genetics, the current products that you are using, how often or long you wash your face, hormones, and so on.
That’s why it’s important to pinpoint the root of the issue and attack the oil production directly. Two of the biggest contributions I see all the time are a lack of proper skin care or simply not washing the face with the right products.
Let’s jump into a simple, step-by-step skincare routine for oily skin, so that you can fight back the oil on your path to clearer skin.
You want to have a cleanser that is going to lather or foam. There are a lot of cleansers on the market that are lotion-based and that is just not going to be enough to help keep oil production under control.
When products lather or foam, it means they have ingredients like salicylic, glycolic, and lactic acid which are going to target the pores, clean them out, and help maintain the amount of oil your skin produces.
Recommendation: SkinBetter Oxygen Infusion Wash and EltaMD Deep Pore Cleanser
After using your cleanser, toning is going to be a really important step for you. Your toner can be applied both morning and night, or just one or the other. Some product lines even have toner pads, making them really easy to use. That way you don’t have to worry about a solution with cotton pads; you can just open up a jar and already have a pre-soaked toning pad ready to use.
The toning pads are going to help give you that “fresh” feel with your skin and help clean up any extra oil that was not removed from cleansing your face. I also highly recommend toner pads for after your workouts if you’re not going home straight away.
Recommendation: ZO Complexion Renewal Pads
In a basic skincare routine, after you use a toner pad, the next step would be to apply a moisturizer. For the mornings, you want to stick with moisturizers that are very lightweight. I highly suggest one that is water-based, with hyaluronic acids, such as Revision Skincare’s Hydrating Serum. This moisturizer is not going to have a creamy base, so it’ll help keep your skin more dry and matte all day long.
At night, you can use the same moisturizer you applied in the morning or opt for something a bit thicker. If you do wake up and your skin is a little dewy or oily, don’t worry. You’re just going to be washing your face and restarting your skincare routine for the day anyways; switch back to that lighter moisturizer for throughout the day.
If you have combination skin where you get oily during the day and dry at night, again you want to use a very lightweight moisturizer morning and then use something a bit thicker at night. Your skin will soak in that moisturizer overnight and you’ll wake up with a nice, healthy glow.
Recommendation: EltaMD AM and PM Therapy and Revision Skincare Hydrating Serum
After you finish with your moisturizer, the next step is to put on sunscreen. Some sunscreens are actually dual-purpose, acting as both a moisturizer and SPF. This is going to be a really nice option for those with oily-prone skin because you’ll be applying less products on your face. So if you do happen to use an SPF with moisturizing properties in it, opt out of the previous moisturizer step.
One of my favorite sunscreens for oily or acne-prone skin is from EltaMD called UV Clear. They make it as a regular sunscreen, but there is also a tinted option for those looking for a bit more coverage. Again, another great option for those looking to apply less products on their skin.
Recommendation: EltaMD UV Clear, EltaMD UV Elements, Revision Skincare Intellishade Matte
An additional product that you could consider adding into your routine is retinol. Retinol helps to speed up skin cell turnover, so it’s going to keep the surface of your skin nice and clean; it’s also going to help with overall oil production and the size of your pores.
It should be included in your evening routine as the first or second product after you finish cleansing. Retinol is a product that you need to gradually introduce into your routine because it can cause redness or irritation.
Recommendation: SkinBetter AlphaRet Overnight Cream
If your skincare regimen already closely mirrors the above and you feel like your skin is still very oily or you’re looking for more improvement, then you need to consider treatments. Skincare products are like putting gas in your car and treatments are like getting your oil changed- you need good skincare treatments so your products can work better and you need to use good products between treatments to make sure you’re doing everything possible to combat that excess oil production.
HydraFacials
Two treatments I’d highly recommend are the HydraFacial and Vi Peels. For HydraFacials, you could have one done about every 2-6 weeks. If you’re really oily or acne-prone, every two weeks is fine to start until the oil production gets under control. Otherwise, maintenance HydraFacials every 4-6 weeks is sufficient.
Vi Peels
Vi Peels are my favorite line of chemical peels and can be done on a quarterly basis. You do not want to do these every single month or too often throughout the year because they are a bit more aggressive on the skin. The Vi Peel will penetrate deeper into your skin compared to the HydraFacial, so it may be a really good idea to start with a series of peels and then just maintain the skin with HydraFacials thereafter.
It can be overwhelming to completely overhaul your skincare routine or start from nothing, so we want to help in any way we can! You can always call us to schedule a free skincare consultation at (513)-791-9474. We’ll sit down with you, assess the condition of your skin, suggest the right products, and get you on a treatment plan that works. There’s no better day than today to get started!